The Beginning, February, 2009
on Margaret Campbell's Rambles (India), 04/Apr/2009 23:42, 34 days ago
What is this blog about? Jan and I have talked for several years about getting away from our corporate jobs to do something fulfilling in the world, and now the time has come. With Jan retired we had the chance to make a break for it, so February 1 was my last day with Accenture. We applied and were accepted toVSO, which is an international federation of agencies that provides professional services (or as they say"skills sharing" and"capacity building") in service of the world's poorest populations. We learned about VSO through Accenture when I climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro in 2007 to raise money for HIV/AIDS programs in Africa. The trip and fundraising was organized by VSO which has a business partnership with Accenture, and in fact my climbing"buddy" was the VSO staff member on the trip. We had the chance to meet with the local VSO guy in Nairobi after the climb and had a good conversation with him about what working with VSO would be like. In fact, he was very keen on us returning to Africa and very much encouraged us to apply. Why VSO? Luck is mostly it. We could have researched the Peace Corps and other agencies but we thought the people we met through VSO were impressive. I believe that if Accenture partners with them they must be good. And that, so far, has turned out to be true. If you believe VSO's perspective, they do not so much work in"service delivery" (teaching English, providing medical care) as collaborating with communities to build their own skills to mitigate disadvantage. Apologies to VSO for potentially muddling their mission but that is the feeble grasp of the matter that this newly minted international development professional has to work with. And how does all this work? Well, although VSO stands for Volunteer Services Overseas, it's not exactly volunteer work. VSO people get paid the wage that a similar professional would make in that location. A doctor placed in Ethiopia would receive an Ethiopican doctor's salary and thus be able to live at a commuensurate degree of comfort and privilege. Naturally VSO does not cover costs at home so college tuition, mortgages and long term care insurance are considerations for us"old fart" participants. Many of our VSO colleagues do not have these commitments, being at a different stage in life. Once accepted by VSO, the"volunteer" receives training in international development and is offered a placement aligned to his/her skills and interests. If interested, the in-country employer, usually an NGO or CBO (community based organization) but sometimes a government, approves the match and then the fun begins. As we have not recieved a placement yet, we will be spending some time in New Orleans working for a charter school as a"tune up." Also, I cannot sit around :-).